Buninyong

The Township of Buninyong is located 11 kilometres south of Ballarat. Nestled at the foot of Mt Buninyong, an extinct volcano, the area offers walking tracks and many memorable views. Lining the streets are many of the town’s original buildings, still preserved and still open for business. Buninyong’s scenic beauty is unsurpassed.

The village atmosphere is a big attraction with quiet streets radiating out from a central commercial area. Still only a few kilometres from the urban area of Ballarat, Buninyong has retained its uniqueness because of a planned greenbelt which ensures Buninyong remains a separate settlement from Ballarat.

History

First settled in 1838, Buninyong was brought to prominence by the discovery of gold in 1851. Buninyong was an important stopping off point for travellers from Geelong, looking for new pastures for their flocks of sheep.

Nestled on the lower slopes of Mt Buninyong, early pastoralists laid down a loose framework for the settlement, marking the boundaries between hill and plain and between the dense and open forests. By 1849 Buninyong was a sizeable community with a Presbyterian Church, hotel, blacksmith and general store.

In the 1870s when the population was around 2000, a flour mill and a soda water factory gave Buninyong an industrial base. In the 1890s, a butter factory was also opened in the original courthouse building (superseded in 1886), near the Botanic Gardens. In the early 20th century the butter factory was moved closer to the railway station.

In the last two decades of the 20th century Buninyong’s dwindling population experienced healthy growth as people rediscovered this pretty township. By 2001 the population had almost returned to that of its heyday.

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